A formidable drill rig fleet is making a major contribution to the mine's success

Keeping Detour Lake on target to becoming Canada’s largest gold mine

Located in the Abitibi greenstone belt of Ontario, the Detour Lake mine lies approximately 8 km west of the Ontario-Québec border and 180 km northeast of Cochrane. The property had already produced 1.8 million ounces of gold as a Placer Dome underground operation between 1983 and 1989.

Purchased by Detour Gold in 2006, Detour Lake contains a total resource of 3.4 million ounces (indicated and inferred). Over time, the company grew the resources, completed a positive feasibility study and now has proven and probable reserves of 15.5 million ounces (476.4 Mt and 1.02 g/t).

Detour Lake’s production potential is 600 000 ounces of gold annually for the first 10 years and 660 000 ounces of gold annually for the balance of the mine’s estimated 21.7 year life.

To realize that production, Detour Lake has entered a long-term relationship with Atlas Copco Canada. Six Atlas Copco Pit Viper 271 blasthole rigs – the first PV 271 rigs in this region – and three Atlas Copco SmartROC D65 blasthole rigs are now in production at the mine.

"Atlas Copco is our 21-year drilling partner. We chose Altas Copco rigs first of all because of their availability, but also because of Atlas Copco’s support network, which is transparent throughout Canada. We are having great success with these rigs."

Drew Anwyll, Detour Lake mine’s Vice President, Operations

Keeping Detour Lake on target to becoming Canada’s largest gold mine

Assigned roles

As the nine rigs were delivered over the past two years, they were put to work sideby-side to rapidly expand the current pit, which is 700 m wide by 2.5 km long and 100 m deep, to a final footprint of 1.3 km by 3.5 km at 700 m depth. The footprint will allow Detour Lake access to a hanging wall of goldbearing quartz veins with a 200 m wide, 3 km strike length.

Two of the six Pit Viper rigs are electric models, and four are diesel powered. All nine PV 271 and SmartROC D65 rigs were drilling 8-inch diameter holes using Atlas Copco tooling. Patterns were generally 250 to 300 holes with 6 m by 7 m burden and spacing, and each drill can complete a pattern in three to four shifts.

The PV 271 rigs are using the Atlas Copco Secoroc QL80 hammer. The SmartROC D65 rigs were using COP 64 hammers.

Epiroc operated under the trademark “Atlas Copco” prior to January 1, 2018.

More news on this subject

Back to work with the help of RigScan technology

When business slows down, drilling contractors may have to lay-up some of their equipment. But when things pick up again, the equipment may no longer be “fit and ready” to take on new assignments. Here’s the best way to find out.

Insight on underground trends

Tomorrow’s underground mines will be more remote with orebodies that are difﬁcult to reach and consequently more dangerous to excavate. Against this background, Atlas Copco’s Mattias Pettersson says mining companies have only one option.

New big hole hammer cuts costs

Most surface miners agree that bigger blastholes reduces the cost of blasting but also increases the cost of hammers and bits. For example, mines have been switching from 152–171 mm (6–6 ¾ in) holes to 215–250 mm (8 ½–9 in) holes to increase productivity....